System and Method for Processing a Voice Mail

ABSTRACT

Described is a system and method for processing a voice mail. The method comprises receiving a voice mail, converting the voice mail into a text message using a predefined speech-to-text conversion algorithm and transmitting the text message to a wireless computing device.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/977,510, filed Dec. 21, 2015, which is continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 14/540,069, filed Nov. 13, 2014, now U.S. Pat. No.9,258,426, issued Feb. 9, 2016, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 13/445,884, filed Apr. 12, 2012, now U.S. Pat. No.8,914,003, issued Dec. 16, 2014, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 11/455,123, filed Jun. 15, 2006, now U.S. Pat. No.8,249,568, issued Aug. 21, 2012, the disclosures of which areincorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

A conventional communications network may employ a voice mail systemwhich allows a caller to leave a voice mail for an intended recipient.For example, if the recipient is not available to take a call, the callis forwarded to a voice mailbox for the recipient which stores the voicemail left by the caller. The recipient then receives some indicationthat the voice mail is stored and accesses the voice mail system toretrieve the voice mail. To retrieve the voice mail, the recipient istypically required to dial into the voice mail system and provide aunique authentication code. After an authentication procedure (i.e.,matching the authentication code to the voice mailbox), the recipient isprovided access to the voice mailbox and may listen to the voice mail,as well as any other voice mails stored in the voice mailbox (e.g.,previously listened to voice mails that were saved by the recipient).Requiring the recipient to dial into the voice mail system and enter theauthentication code may take a significant amount of time.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a system and method for processing avoice mail. The method comprises receiving a voice mail, converting thevoice mail into a text message using a predefined speech-to-textconversion algorithm and transmitting the text message to a wirelesscomputing device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows an exemplary embodiment of a system for processing a voicemessage according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows an exemplary embodiment of a method for processing a voicemessage according to the present invention.

FIG. 3a shows an exemplary embodiment of a notification messageaccording to the present invention.

FIG. 3b shows an exemplary embodiment of an authentication queryaccording to the present invention.

FIG. 3c shows an exemplary embodiment of a voice mail retrieval promptaccording to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention will be described with reference to the followingdescription and the attached drawings, wherein like elements areprovided with the same reference numerals. The present inventiondescribes a system and method for processing a voice mail. In theexemplary embodiments of the present invention, the voice mail may beconverted into a text message and/or email and delivered to a computingdevice. While the exemplary embodiments will be described with referenceto a voicemail, the present invention may be applied to any digitalaudio data file, including but not limited to, WAV files, MP3 files, WMAfiles, etc. For example, digital audio files which are attachments toemails may be converted into text messages and/or emails.

FIG. 1 shows an exemplary embodiment of a system 5 for processing avoice mail according to the present invention. The system 5 may includea communication network 10 that is accessible by a mobile computing unit(MU) 15 via an access point (AP) 20. The network 10 may be, for example,a cellular communications network, a wireless local/wide area network, asatellite communication network, etc. In the exemplary embodiments, theMU 15 may be a handheld, wireless computing device (e.g., a mobilephone, a PDA, a tablet computer, a laptop, a digital media player, agaming device, etc.) which is configured for voice communications, aswell as transmitting/receiving text messages and/or emails. For example,the MU 15 may be configured to transmit/receive text messages inaccordance with a Short Message Service (SMS) provided by the GlobalSystem for Mobile Communications (GSM) standard. The voicecommunications may be conducted in full- and/or half-duplex modes. Thoseof skill in the art will understand that the MU 15 may also be astationary computing device, such as a PC which has access to thenetwork 10 via a wired connection (e.g., Ethernet) and/or a wirelessconnection (e.g., a network interface card).

Those of skill in the art will understand that the MU 15 may includeelectrical components for conducting wireless communications, generatingand storing data, executing applications, displaying content, etc. Forexample, the MU 15 may include a wireless transceiver fortransmitting/receiving wireless signals in accordance with apredetermined wireless communication standard (e.g., GSM, 802.1x, iDEN,etc.). Additionally, the MU 15 preferably includes or is coupled to adisplay screen (e.g., LCD, CRT) for displaying text, images, a GUI, etc.The MU 15 also preferably includes or is coupled to an input arrangement(e.g., a keypad, a keyboard, a touch screen) allowing a user of the MU15 to enter data, select/highlight items on the display screen, etc.Those of skill in the art will understand that the above-namedcomponents are exemplary and that the MU 15 may include or be coupled toany number of further components which correspond to variousfunctionalities of the MU 15.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the system 5 further includes a voice mailsystem 25 which may be implemented in software and/or hardware (e.g.,one or more computing/storage devices) and configured to store voicemails for one or more users. That is, the voice mail system 25 mayprovide individualized voice mail storage (e.g., a voice mailbox) foreach MU in the system 5, i.e., the voice mailbox may be associated witha phone number or other identifier of the MU 15. For example, the voicemail system 25 may store a voice mail for the user of the MU 15 in acorresponding voice mailbox.

As is known in the art, the voice mail may be a digital audio data filewhich is generated for a variety of reasons. For example, the user mayhave been away from the MU 15 and/or the MU 15 may have beendisconnected from the network 10 when a call was attempted, and, thus,not received the call. As such, a caller may have been redirected to thevoice mail system 25 (in particular, the voice mailbox corresponding tothe called number) and instructed to record a voice mail. In anotherinstance, the caller may have dialed directly into the voice mailbox,desiring to generate the voice mail without having the MU 15 indicate anincoming call, e.g., ring, vibrate, LED flash, etc. In yet a furtherinstance, the voice mail may be deposited in voice mailboxes for aplurality of users. For example, the voice mail may be a system messagecreated by an administrator of the voice mail system 25 (or the network10) informing the users about a change, update, temporary disabling,etc. Alternatively, the voice mail may be an advertisement which isdeposited in the voice mailboxes for the plurality of users.

When the voice mail system 25 has stored the voice mail, a voice mailnotification message may be transmitted to the MU 15 informing the userthat the voice mail is stored by the voice mail system 25. As is knownin the art, the notification message may be transmitted after a newvoice mail has been stored by the voice mail system 25. That is, thenotification message may only be transmitted once for each voice mail ata time when the voice mail is initially received. However, as is knownin the art, the voice mail system 25 may store voice mails even afterthey are listened to by the user (e.g., when the user does not deletethe voice mail, when the user indicates that the voice mail should besaved, etc.). That is, the voice mail system 25 typically provides theuser the option of saving or deleting the voice mail after it has beenretrieved.

In the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the notificationmessage further includes a voice-to-text conversion message/query. Thatis, the voice mail system 25 (or another component on the network 10)may be configured to convert the voice mail into a text message and/oran email. For example, the voice mail system 25 may utilize aspeech-to-text conversion module which converts the digital audio datain the voice mail into a text message and/or an email. As understood bythose of skill in the art, the caller's speech (sound waves) may havebeen digitized by a caller device (any voice-enabled communicationdevice). The digital audio data is then stored as the voice mail in theuser's voice mailbox by the voice mail system 25. The conversion moduleconverts the digital audio data into basic language units and then intowords. Optionally, the conversion module may perform a contextualanalysis to ensure that the words are spelled correctly and are linkedin grammatically correct ways. The conversion module may utilize aspeech-to-text conversion algorithm which, for example, convertscontinuous speech into text or segments the digital audio data intosegments (e.g., individual words, syllables, sounds, by pauses, etc.) toensure that each word is properly converted into text.

While the exemplary embodiment states that the conversion module isutilized by the voice mail system 25, those of skill in the art willunderstand that the speech-to-text conversion may be accomplished byanother device communicatively linked to the voice mail system 25. Forexample, GSM networks typically utilize a Short Message Service Center(SMSC) as routing hubs for transmitting SMS messages. Thus, theconversion module may be located at the SMSC. Alternatively, the usermay use the MU 15 to reroute calls which are not received to a furthervoice mailbox. For example, when the user is on another call the callmay be re-routed to a Call Forward Busy number, and when the user doesnot answer the call the call may be re-routed to a Call Forward No Replynumber. In the exemplary embodiment, these numbers are configured todial into the voice mailbox of the user maintained by the voice mailsystem 25. However, the numbers may be reconfigured by the user (on theMU 15) or by the voice mail system 25 at the user's request to routecalls to the further voice mailbox on the voice mail system 25 or afurther device which utilizes the conversion module.

Upon receipt of the notification message, the user may choose to listento the voice mail or convert the voice mail into a text message.Listening to the voice mail be enacted as is conventionally known, i.e.,dialing into the voice mail system 25 and providing a voice mailauthentication code. If the user indicates that the voice mail should beconverted into a text message, the user may be prompted to enter anauthentication code which may be included in a text message sent to thevoice mail system 25. For example, the voice mail system 25 may beconfigured to transmit and respond to text messages in accordance withthe SMS or email. The authentication code may be the same as the voicemail authentication code or a unique voice mail-to-text messageconversion code. The voice mail system 25 utilizes the authenticationcode to ensure an identity of the user. When the authentication code isverified, the voice mail may be converted into a text message (and/oremail) and delivered to the MU 15.

As is known by those of skill in the art, some text message deliveryprotocols only support a limited payload, i.e., predefined number ofalphanumeric and/or punctuation characters per text message. In the casewhen the voice mail is converted into a text message having a greaternumber of characters than allowed in a single text message, the textmessage may be segmented into a plurality of segmented text messages anddelivered in succession (or a bundle) to the MU 15. A check may beprovided to ensure that a division of the text message does not divide aword, is not in a middle of a sentence, etc.

In an alternative exemplary embodiment, upon receipt of the voice mail,the voice mail system 25 may determine whether the user has indicatedthat all (or selected ones of the voice mails) should be converted totext messages. For example, the user may instruct the voice mail system25 (while subscribing or remotely with the MU 15) that all voice mails,or voice mails from a particular caller(s), should be converted to textand delivered to the MU 15 as text messages.

FIG. 2 shows an exemplary embodiment of a method 200 for processing avoice mail according to the present invention. In step 205, the voicemail system 25 receives the voice mail. As stated above, the voice mailsystem 25 may be part of the network 10 or may be a stand-alone systemfor storing voice mails for a plurality of users (e.g., subscribers).The voice mail system 25 may allow the caller to generate the voicemail, or may receive the voice mail from another device on the network10.

In optional step 210, the voice mail system 25 may determine whether thevoice mail should be automatically converted into a text message and/oran email. For example, the user of the MU 15 may have indicated that allvoice mails, or voice mails generated by a selected caller(s) (asidentified by a phone number of the caller) should be automaticallyconverted into text and delivered to the MU 15 as text messages. Thus,in step 210, the voice mail system 25 may compare a source identifier ofthe voice mail (e.g., the caller's phone number) to a list of one ormore source identifiers for which the user has indicated that voicemails from the corresponding source(s) should be automatically convertedinto text messages and delivered to the MU 15. Similarly, the user maycreate a further list of one or more further source identifiers forwhich voice mails should never be, or require the user's authorizationto be, converted to text messages.

In step 215, the voice mail system 25 notifies the user that the voicemail is stored at the voice mail system 25. For example, thenotification message may be transmitted to the MU 15 notifying the userof the voice mail. As shown in FIG. 3a , the notification message mayinclude a notification portion stating “You have a new voice mail” and aconversion portion asking “Convert the voice mail to a text message?”The notification message may further include description data indicatinga source of the voice mail, a time/date of its creation, whether it isnew or has been listened to, etc.

In step 220, the voice mail system 25 determines whether the voice mailshould be converted into a text message by analyzing a response to thenotification message. The response may be generated by, for example,pressing a button and/or touching a portion of the screen of the MU 15to indicate that the voice mail should or should not be converted into atext message. If the user indicates that the voice mail should not beconverted into a text message, the MU 15 may display a prompt toretrieve the voice mail by dialing into the voice mail system 25, asshown in FIG. 3c . The user then may retrieve the voice mail by dialinginto the voice mail system 25 as is conventionally known.

If the user responds to the conversion portion in the affirmative, anauthentication query, as shown in FIG. 3b , may be presented on the MU15, prompting the user to enter the authentication code. When the userenters the authentication code, a response message including theauthentication code is transmitted from the MU 15 to the voice mailsystem 25. The response message may be a response text message (e.g.,SMS message) delivered to the voice mail system 25. For example, the MU15 may be configured with an address (e.g., a phone number) of the voicemail system 25 and/or a text-message receiving module thereof. As notedabove, the response message may be transmitted to any device on thenetwork 10 which includes the conversion module. Preferably, the devicehaving the conversion module stores or has access to the voice mail boxfor the MU 15 and may communicate with the MU 15 using text messages oremails. In the exemplary embodiment, the voice mail system 25 may detectthe authentication code in the response message and then authenticatethe user by comparing the authentication code to a stored authenticationcode for the voice mail box in which the voice mail is stored. When theauthentication code is valid, the method 200 proceeds.

In step 225, the voice mail is converted into a text message. Asexplained above, the digital audio data may be converted into basiclanguage units and then into words using the speech-to-text conversionalgorithm. A contextual analysis may also be performed to ensure thatthe words are spelled correctly and are associated with each other ingrammatically correct ways. Literal (phonetic) conversions may beprovided for unintelligible words/phrases, or the conversion module maysubstitute a closest-fit word when compared to a dictionary. Theconversion module may parse the voice mail into individual words toensure that each word is properly converted into text.

In step 230, the text message is delivered to the MU 15. In oneexemplary embodiment, the text message is delivered in accordance withthe SMS which is defined in GSM recommendation 03.40. The voice mailsystem 25 may include, utilize or act as the SMSC which transmits thetext message to the MU 15 using a predefined protocol such as, forexample, SS7 within a standard GSM map framework, TCP/IP within thestandard GSM map framework, etc. As is known in the art, conventionalSMS attempts to deliver a message to the MU 15 according to a “besteffort” assurance. However, when the text message is a converted voicemail, a higher level of assurance may be utilized to ensure that thetext message is delivered, i.e., the delivery may be attempted untilacknowledged by the MU 15.

As described above, the voice mail may be converted into a plurality oftext messages, because, according to some text message deliveryprotocols, the text message has a predetermined payload which is limitedto a predetermined number of characters (e.g., alphanumeric,punctuation, etc.). In this embodiment, the voice mail system 25 maydeliver the plurality of text messages to the MU 15, which may be readas separate text messages or compiled into a single text message.

In a further exemplary embodiment, the voice mail may also, oralternatively, be converted into an email. That is, the voice mailsystem 25 may store an email address which is associated with the voicemail box. When the user indicates that the voice mail should beconverted to a text message, the text message may also be delivered asan email (e.g., SMTP) to the email address. For example, after the userresponds to the conversion portion of the notification message, an emailprompt may be presented by the MU 15 asking the user whether, along withthe text message, an email should be generated and delivered to theemail address. The email may be retrieved using the MU 15 or anothercomputing device which provides access to the user's email service.

In another exemplary embodiment, the text message may be translated intoa different language based on a source or destination of the call. Forexample, if a Korean speaker is the caller, the voice mail may beconverted into a text message in Korean. If the recipient is an Englishspeaker, the text message may be translated from Korean to English.Alternatively, the voice mail may be translated prior to conversion intothe text message, i.e., the digital audio data may be translated intothe different language and then converted into a text message.

In another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the user mayuse the MU 15 to retrieve a voice mail summary as a text message. Forexample, a plurality of voice mails may be stored in the voice mail boxassociated with the MU 15. The user may transmit a summary inquirymessage (as a text message) to the voice mail system 25 and receive asummary message (as a text message) providing a description of eachvoice mail stored in the voice mail box. The description may include acaller identification (e.g., phone number, user ID), a time/date of thecall and a length in time (and/or size) of the voice mail. Using the MU15, the use may select a voice mail on the summary message forconversion into a text message. A selection message may be transmittedto the voice mail system 25 indicating a selected voice mail forconversion to a text message. The voice mail system 25 may then convertthe selected voice mail into a text message and deliver it to the MU 15,as described above.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodifications may be made in the present invention, without departingfrom the spirit or scope of the invention. Thus, it is intended that thepresent invention cover the modifications and variations of thisinvention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims andtheir equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system, comprising: a text message applicationinstalled on a mobile communication device having a touch screendisplay; a voice mail system communicatively linked to the mobilecommunication device, the voice mail system adapted to receive a voicemail audio file for a user, convert the voice mail audio file into atext message, and transmit to the mobile communication device anotification message including the voice mail audio file and the textmessage, wherein the text message application is adapted to display thetext message and play back the voice mail audio file.
 2. The systemaccording to claim 1, wherein the text message application is an emailapplication.
 3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the textmessage application is a Short Message Service (SMS) application.
 4. Thesystem according to claim 1, wherein the notification message includesdescription data associated with the voice mail, wherein the descriptiondata comprises at least one of a source of the voice mail, a time of thevoice mail, and a date of the voice mail.
 5. The system according toclaim 4, wherein the text message application displays a summary messageincluding the description data.
 6. The system according to claim 5,wherein the text message application displays the notification messagewhen a user touches a portion of the touch screen display correspondingto a summary message including the description data associated with thenotification message.